Throughout the years, boxing movies have been synonymous with tales of redemption – from “Rocky,” to “Raging Bull,” to “The Fighter” – and Antoine Fuqua’s “Southpaw” is no different. In fact, you’d be hard-pressed to find anything in the story that hasn’t already appeared countless times before in other boxing films, but despite the clichéd plot, the movie isn’t without its charms. At the top of that list is star Jake Gyllenhaal, who continues his remarkable career reinvention from pretty-boy leading man to serious actor with yet another fantastic performance. It likely won’t earn him the Oscar nomination he was wrongfully snubbed for last year’s “Nightcrawler,” but it builds upon that transformative role with such mature confidence that it only seems like a matter of time before he’s finally rewarded for his work.

The movie opens with undefeated light heavyweight champion Billy “The Great” Hope (Gyllenhaal) successfully defending his title at Madison Square Garden and cementing his status as one of the best boxers in the sport. Everyone wants their chance to go toe-to-toe with him in the ring, including hotshot fighter Miguel Escobar (Miguel Gomez), but Billy’s levelheaded wife, Maureen (Rachel McAdams), urges him to make the sensible decision and call it quits while he’s still on top… and before he becomes so punch drunk that he can’t enjoy his success. When Miguel instigates a fight with him at a charity fundraiser and Maureen is shot and killed among the chaos, Billy spirals out of control, landing himself in trouble with the boxing league and losing his house, his possessions, and most importantly, custody of his daughter Leila (Oona Laurence). Desperate to keep her out of the foster care system where he spent his childhood, Billy seeks help from a gruff, veteran trainer (Forest Whitaker) to get back what he lost.

“Southpaw” might as well have been made 30 years ago – that’s how much it relies on the same tired clichés like the big training montage, the climactic final fight and more. The main character’s surname is Hope, for crying out loud, and Fuqua doesn’t shy away from laying the symbolism on thick, including a cheesy scene where Billy’s daughter (now living under the care of child protective services after his breakdown) asks him to quiz her on the spelling of “hopelessness.” It’s one of the few eye-rolling moments in “Southpaw,” but fortunately, the film avoids dragging itself too far into melodrama thanks to some excellent performances and an otherwise solid screenplay by Kurt Sutter that may not bring anything new to the table narratively, but is as brutal and emotionally charged as you’d expect from the “Sons of Anarchy” creator. Maureen’s death is particularly gut-wrenching, not only because of the writing and performances, but also the unforgiving way in which Fuqua shoots the scene.

Sutter originally wrote “Southpaw” for Eminem as a sort of spiritual successor to “8 Mile” and a metaphor for the rapper’s own custody battle for his daughter, but it was a good thing that he turned it down, because Gyllenhaal brings a physicality and intensity to the role that Eminem just doesn’t seem capable of delivering. Unlike the lean and wily Lou Bloom in “Nightcrawler,” Billy Hope is a tattooed, musclebound beast of a man who’s so self-destructive that he has a reputation for fighting better the more he gets hit. It’s a much more complex role than it appears on the surface, and Gyllenhaal knocks it out of the park. Whitaker is also great as the boxing gym owner who agrees to train Billy when no one else will touch him (and their scenes together are some of the film’s best), while McAdams makes the most of what could have been a throwaway role. She’s only in the movie for about 30 minutes, but it’s crucial that Fuqua cast an actress who would leave a big impression, because her presence can be felt throughout the entire film.

Also worth mentioning are the boxing sequences, which were shot using the HBO crew that films the real-life fights, bringing a level of legitimacy to the movie that only further highlights how committed Gyllenhaal was to making his performance as realistic as possible. (He didn’t use any body doubles, and it shows.) This is an actor who can do no wrong at the moment. He’s picking the right films at the right time, and he’s delivering his best work in the process. “Southpaw” is perhaps his most impressive piece of acting to date, if only because he’s managed to take a fairly standard redemption story and elevate it on the strength of his shoulders alone. The movie isn’t quite on the same level as the true boxing greats, but with Gyllenhaal’s knockout performance front and center, it’s a lot more enjoyable than it probably had any right to be.

Thus far, optimism has reigned supreme in this summer of moviegoing. “Mad Max: Fury Road” was about finding hope and redemption in a wasteland, “Tomorrowland” championed positivity, and now the king of sincerity himself, Cameron Crowe, has given us “Aloha.” The director’s latest effort is a Cameron Crowe film through and through – a heartfelt, funny and honest, albeit a little messy, romantic comedy.

Like most of Crowe’s protagonists, Brian Gilchrist (Bradley Cooper) isn’t the man he once was, a washed-up defense contractor looking for a comeback. His boss, famed billionaire Carson Welch (Bill Murray), is planning on launching a satellite out of Hawaii, and it’s Brian’s job to make sure the launch goes according to plan. Professionally and personally, the cynical Brian runs into more problems than he expected. For starters, his ex-girlfriend Tracy (Rachel McAdams) is now married to John ‘Woody’ Woodside (John Krasinski) and has two kids. Old feelings for Tracy arise when Gilchrist reunites with her, in addition to new ones for his babysitter/partner, Allison Ng (Emma Stone), an ambitious pilot who sees Brian for the man he used to be and the man he could become.

There’s actually more to “Aloha” than that plot description. There are a lot of moving pieces in Crowe’s script, and it takes time for them to become a cohesive unit. The details of Brian’s mission are a tad hazy at first, and his relationship with Allison is initially rushed, as she falls for him a little too quickly. But by the time the second act rolls around, Crowe and the cast are mostly smooth sailing.

The writer/director behind “Almost Famous,” “Jerry Maguire” and “Vanilla Sky” almost always subverts romantic comedy tropes or makes them feel fresh and honest again, and “Aloha” presents some clichéd scenarios in a much-needed new light. Love triangles are generally played for laughs or made easy and deflated of all true conflict in movies, which is almost nothing like real life. Here, Crowe completely humanizes the man Tracy has married, making him arguably more empathetic and likable than the protagonist. In most cases, Woody would either be written as obnoxious or as a cheater, but in “Aloha,” he’s a good but flawed man.

On top of that breath of fresh air, neither Tracy nor Allison is defined by their relationship with Brian. They both have their own struggles unrelated to him. He plays a part in their conflicts, of course, but they’re not purely reactionary roles; they have their own lives. When it comes to the “love triangle” between them, admittedly a guy torn between women that look like Rachel McAdams and Emma Stone reads as flat drama on paper, but it’s nothing of the sort in execution.

Crowe never makes it feel like Brian is weighing his options, nor is the truth ever sugarcoated. We see Tracy and Brian flirt with each other, and Crowe makes it more uncomfortable than endearing. Both the women in Brian life represent a past and a future, which the character struggles with at the start of the film, still yet to realize that he has to become a new man rather than the man he used to be.

There’s plenty of charm in the relationship between Allison and Brian. Their banter is clever and makes their attraction to each other all the more believable. Cooper and Stone are immensely likable actors, and they both have an easygoing charisma that serves Crowe’s writing well. But casting has always been one of Crowe’s strong suits. Supporting players Danny McBride, Bill Murray and Alec Baldwin help liven the film up even more, and just like “Elizabethtown,” where Baldwin gives a tremendous speech about failure, he comes in and out of this movie like a lightning bolt. As for Krasinski, he really shines in his role. Woody’s problem is that he doesn’t communicate well, meaning Krasinki has to give an internalized performance, which he does with humor and warmth. His communication problem also leads to the funniest scene in the movie.

“Aloha” may be Cameron Crowe’s most Billy Wilder-esque film to date. Crowe is very much inspired by the legendary filmmaker, and it often shows in his work. There’s a scene in the movie where Brian discusses hitting rock bottom, and it’s a clear tip of the hat to a very troubling moment from “The Apartment,” another movie that blended humor, pathos and a surprising amount of brutal honesty. Crowe achieves that tricky mix of tones with “Aloha.” Most of the film’s problems are ultimately overshadowed by Crowe’s control of tone, the performances and a surprising and ultimately moving ending.

Richard Curtis has written (and directed, in the case of “Love Actually”) some of the best romantic comedies of the past two decades, so it should come as no surprise that his latest movie follows in the same footsteps. Though Curtis has recently announced that “About Time” will likely be his final film as a director, the movie represents everything that’s great about the kind of romantic comedies Curtis excels at making. That’s because unlike most of the garbage in the genre, his films are about much more than just the superficial meet-cute between boy and girl, aiming for something a lot deeper and more emotionally rewarding, which he delivers in spades with the excellent “About Time.”

Tim Lake (Domhnall Gleeson) has just turned 21, and the day after his family’s customary New Year’s Eve party, his father (Bill Nighy) lets him in on a secret: the men on his side of the family have the ability to travel through time. All he needs to do is go somewhere dark (like a closet or bathroom), clench his fists, and think of the time and place he wants to go back to. There are some caveats to Tim’s newfound powers, but the most important one is that he can only change events in his own life, so he decides to use them to find a girlfriend. It’s hardly the most inspiring use of such an incredible gift, but after moving to London to work as a lawyer, Tim meets the girl of his dreams in American import Mary (Rachel McAdams). He’s able to perfect every moment in their relationship by doing it over and over again “Groundhog Day”-style, but Tim eventually discovers that there are consequences to altering history.

It’s no secret that Curtis loves working with Hugh Grant (the actor has appeared in four of his films), but you’d be hard-pressed to find a better replacement than Domhnall Gleeson, who is outstanding in the lead role as a dorkier and more relatable version of the typical Grant character. Gleeson has been on the verge of breaking out for several years, particularly with his scene-stealing role in “Anna Karenina,” and his performance in “About Time” proves that the actor is primed for bigger and better things. Rachel McAdams is also good as Tim’s love interest, and it’s their chemistry that allows the audience to really buy into the relationship. But for as important as Tim and Mary’s love story may be to the movie, it’s the father/son bond that’s the most affecting, thanks in no small part to Bill Nighy, who’s essentially playing the world’s greatest dad. Curtis has said that the death of his own father helped inform the writing of this film, and that adoration shines through in every scene between Gleeson and Nighy.

“About Time” is classic Richard Curtis, through and through. It’s incredibly charming, funny and touching, flitting between emotions so effortlessly that you sometimes find yourself laughing while still choking back the tears. Though the movie gets a little serious in the final act, it’s essential to the story’s core message, which is all about not living in the past and enjoying every day to the fullest. The way in which Tim learns that lesson is a tad cruel, but the last 30 minutes are handled beautifully, ending on a sad but sweet note that will resonate with anyone who’s ever lost a member of their family. If the rumors are true and “About Time” does end up being Curtis’ swan song, the writer/director can take comfort knowing that he went out on top, because this is not only his most mature and personal work to date, but it’s also one of his best.